BEYOND THE OBASANJO LIBRARY EXPLOSION

The regulatory agency could do more to stem the dangerous trend

In what was recorded as the fourth within a period of one week, one person was immediately confirmed dead with another critically injured following a domestic gas explosion at the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library in Abeokuta, Ogun State last week. “Early reports indicate that the explosion was caused by gas used in maintenance of ACs at the unit. An investigation has been launched for further details and action”, said an aide to former President Obasanjo, Atom Lim. Managing Director of the library, Vitalis Ortese, said the explosion occurred when a pair of technical vendors were conducting routine servicing of the air conditioning units.

While we commiserate with the family of the deceased, the rate at which gas explosions of different variants claim lives in our country should worry the authorities. At least five persons were killed with dozens of others injured in a densely populated suburb of Lagos last year when a Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) plant exploded and engulfed the entire area. The LPG tanker was in the process of discharging its content at a time the station’s generating set was running. The spark and the explosion which followed threw the discharging tanker across the road. Aside the loss of lives and the injuries sustained by many, 25 buildings, 16 shops, a private school building, a hotel and several vehicles/tricycles were razed.

Also of increasing concerns are gas explosions of the domestic kind, mostly because of leaking cylinders. Ironically, this is coming amid intense campaigns on the need for Nigerians to drop kerosene for gas as a cheaper and cleaner means of cooking. In recent years, fatal explosions had been reported in Akwa Ibom, Delta, Lagos, Jigawa and many other states. In one of the incidents, the gas escaped into the air and got to a fire point where a lady was operating a restaurant, killing people along the way. Another gas explosion at Arakale market in Akure, Ondo State was traced to an illegal gas re-filling plant which wounded many and razed many shops.

Not long ago, a chlorine cylinder exploded at the Plateau State Water Board treatment plant at Lamingo, Dogon Karfe, Jos South local government, leaving eight people dead, among them a pregnant woman and children. Dozens of others sustained varying degrees of injuries. Perhaps the most sensational was the explosion in an Abuja suburb which claimed the lives of two sisters, aged 31 and 25 in 2013. The two young ladies were trying to put out the fire when the gas cylinder exploded, killing them instantly. In another incident that is typical of the carelessness often associated with many homes, a female domestic help in Epe, Lagos, turned on the gas and left to chat outside. By the time she returned to light up the gas, the kitchen was suffused with chemical. The resultant fire and explosion sent her and neighbours scampering for safety. At least 24 people suffered various degrees of burns. In yet another, a retail outlet was discharging gas from a big cylinder without safety measures. The explosion cost him his life.

For years, the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) has harped on the need for an enlightenment campaign to ensure safe use of LPG by households. But there are no measures put in place despite numerous accidents that have claimed lives. There are also reports of adulterated gas being sold at retailer outlets across the country. To avert these tragedies, the promise to phase out and replace the gas cylinders in circulation with more advanced ones should be hastened. Some households have been using the same cylinder for upwards of three decades. That is a disaster waiting to happen.